50 U.S. Code § 2524 - Stockpile management program

The Secretary of Energy, acting through the Administrator and in consultation with the Secretary of Defense, shall carry out a program, in support of the stockpile stewardship program, to provide for the effective management of the weapons in the nuclear weapons stockpile, including the extension of the effective life of such weapons. The program shall have the following objectives:

(1)To increase the reliability, safety, and security of the nuclear weapons stockpile of the United States.

(2)To further reduce the likelihood of the resumption of underground nuclear weapons testing.

(3)To achieve reductions in the future size of the nuclear weapons stockpile.

(4)To reduce the risk of an accidental detonation of an element of the stockpile.

(5)To reduce the risk of an element of the stockpile being used by a person or entity hostile to the United States, its vital interests, or its allies.

(b) Program limitations

In carrying out the stockpile management program under subsection (a), the Secretary of Energy shall ensure that—

(1)any changes made to the stockpile shall be made to achieve the objectives identified in subsection (a); and

(2)any such changes made to the stockpile shall—

(A)remain consistent with basic design parameters by including, to the maximum extent feasible, components that are well understood or are certifiable without the need to resume underground nuclear weapons testing; and

(B)use the design, certification, and production expertise resident in the nuclear security enterprise to fulfill current mission requirements of the existing stockpile.

(c) Program budget

In accordance with the requirements under section
2529 of this title, for each budget submitted by the President to Congress under section
1105 of title
31, the amounts requested for the program under this section shall be clearly identified in the budget justification materials submitted to Congress in support of that budget.

Subsecs. (d) to (f). Pub. L. 108–136, § 3111, struck out subsecs. (d) to (f). Prior to amendment, subsec. (d) required submittal to committees of the House and Senate of a plan for the extension of the effective life of the weapons in the nuclear weapons stockpile and annual updates of the plan, subsec. (e) required a GAO assessment of the plan and updates, and subsec. (f) stated the sense of Congress regarding funding of the program under subsec. (a).